


MiM: Brother of Mine

by VulcanRavenClaw



Series: Music is Magic [2]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-29
Updated: 2020-12-29
Packaged: 2021-03-11 03:02:46
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,791
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28398141
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/VulcanRavenClaw/pseuds/VulcanRavenClaw
Summary: This is a series of 'deleted scenes' from my main WIP titled Music is Magic. These scenes will all be from the twins POV. Any major plot points that occur with the twins will be referenced in the main story.As usual, I don't own the wizarding world, that belongs to Rowling and the publishing conglomerates.
Series: Music is Magic [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2079837
Kudos: 6





	MiM: Brother of Mine

_November 1989_

“Brother of mine?” Fred asked.

“Yes?” came his twin’s reply.

“How much time have you spent on this wonderful bit of magic?”

“A bit. You?”

“Long enough for you to notice something odd?”

“Odd?”

“Certainly.”

“Not that springs to mind. Why?” George asked

“This morning, while waiting to watch Percy’s reaction to our little prank I noticed a name that I didn’t recognize in his dormitory, practically on top of him. How well would you see you know the 3rd year boys' names for Gryffindor.”

George frowned in thought, “Fairly well. We’ve heard Percy complain or praise them all.” 

“Exactly, and I don’t remember there being anyone named Peter in the lot, you?”

George’s frown deepened, “Not that I know of.”

“Talk to Percy or Charlie?” Fred asked.

George gave Fred a clearly disbelieving look. Fred held up his hands, “Right, right. Let’s go.”

Charlie wasn’t quite the drill sergeant they had expected from a captain. Certainly, he was giving tips and helping, but not as much as the twins had expected. He wasn’t yelling as much or as forcefully as they were usually on the receiving end of while flying in the paddock back home, which seemed especially odd considering the obvious lack of talent on the field.

“Keeper’s decent,” George noted.

“But young. And the beaters are pathetic.”

“True. Chasers aren’t all that great.”

“Too kind, brother,” Fred responded quickly. “Ginny is almost on par with those flyers, and she’s eight. As a matter of fact, so are some of our fellow firsties in the pickup games we’ve had, and those are on school brooms,” Hecontinued while George nodded.

“Maybe we should start some quiet flying lessons, get some rhythm going with some younger players, and talk to Charlie about development,” George mused.

“No extra work that isn’t prank-related. That’s the rule, and you know it,” Fred said resolutely.

“True. But what better prank than beating Slytherin with a team that’s almost all second years?” George countered, grinning.

“I bow to your genius brother. Oh, looks like Charlie saw us,” Fred said unnecessarily as a streak of red robes was diving towards them, pulling up only once he was close enough that the twins almost flinched as their elder brother’s robes brushed the tops of their heads.

“Why are you interrupting my practice?” Charlie asked, giving his clearly frayed temper a vent.

“We needed to talk to someone with some amount of authority.”

“That we trust and--”

“--we know can keep a secret.”

Charlie gave them a flat look. “Your twinspeak would be more impressive if I didn’t know you still practice. How long for that bit?”

The twins looked a bit miffed, but George answered, “Just from the castle doors. We’re getting better.”

Charlie nodded before asking, “What do you need?”

“It’s delicate,” Fred said, while Charlie rolled his eyes.

“We’ve noticed an extra person in the castle.”

“Visitors aren’t common, but they aren’t unheard of,” Charlie answered.

“True, but not often in the common rooms,” Fred answered quickly.

“Yes. But do you know all of the names of all of the students? How could you possibly notice an extra student?” Charlie asked, rolling his eyes and pulling his broom higher into the sky.

“In Gryffindor tower. Specifically one of the dorms,” George called to his brother.

“Who?” Charlie asked.

“Peter Pettigrew,” Fred answered.

Charlie’s face turned puzzled, “I don’t recognize the name…”. Amplifying his voice he turned and called, “Team, to me.” He quickly dispensed some advice, tips, and drills to practice both on and off a broom. After the team left for the changing room, Charlie fairly fell the ten feet into the stands, apparently still dazed.

“Where did you see him? And when?”

“That’s the thing,” George said. “We’ve only seen him there.” He gestured to the parchment Fred was unfolding, having apparently already given the passphrase.

“As far as we can tell he never leaves Gryffindor tower, and he spends most of his time in Percy’s room,” Fred said.

“And this came from?”

“Filch. We snagged it the first time we got dragged down to his office,” George answered.

“That was the second week of term,” Charlie stated.

The twins nodded.

“It’s November.” Charlie’s question wasn’t spoken, but was no less obvious for that.

“It took some time to get it to work. We’d been negotiating for weeks before the map considered us worthy enough to give us the passphrase,” Fred began.

“We got it to work three days ago.,” George continued.

“I saw him this morning,” Fred said. “You remember how Percy kept waking up early so he could get his chores done before you and Ron left all summer? Well we decided to adjust his alarm a little - I stayed up to watch his reaction on this map, but I noticed the other name was basically on top of his.”

Charlie shook his head, “Alright, you come with me. I’ve got some questions for you before we head to Dumbledore’s office.”

The twins’ eyes nearly popped out of their heads.

“We could go to McGonagall, but she will instantly confiscate this,” Charlie said tapping the map, “Dumbledore has a bit more fun and might allow you to keep it since he knows you’ll at least occasionally use it well. Or at least use it for more than just pranking.”

Fred and George followed Charlie, answering questions--the same questions, Charlie was guessing, Albus Dumbledore might ask.

Shortly, the trio of Weasleys were knocking at the door to the Headmaster's office. Before Charlie’s fist landed a third time, the gargoyle spoke: “Young man, you are a prefect. Where’s your head of house?”

“This is a matter for the Headmaster. If he’s available, we would appreciate a few minutes to explain ourselves. If he wants us to go to Professor McGonnagal, we can do that, but considering the gravity of the situation, we believe the Headmaster will want to know.”

After a moment, the gargoyle nodded and lept to the side.

Upon entering the office, they were greeted by the familiar jovial voice of Albus Dumbledore, “Messrs Weasley! What brings such a herd of you here?” His eyes were twinkling. “Surely, the elder is not here to get your younger brothers in more trouble. They don’t seem to need the help, after all.” The still-sparkling eyes took the bite out of his words.

“We have identified an intruder in the castle,” Charlie answered while gesturing to his younger brothers, “but as this is their story, I’ll let them tell the tale. I only found out about fifteen minutes ago.”

Dumbledore’s twinkle was accompanied by intense curiosity.

“Sir, during our first visit to Mr. Filch’s office--” That almost physically hurt George to say, but Charlie was sure proper respect would help the case. “--we managed to obtain this.” He produced the parchment and laid it on the headmaster’s desk while Fred took over the story.

“It took some negotiation, but we got the password.”

“Negotiation?”

“Try to read it, sir.” Fred said with a grin.

What ensued were an amusing three attempts by the headmaster to have the map reveal its secrets. However, it seemed the map was almost obsequious and ashamed that it couldn’t reveal itself. “Clearly made by students--just as clearly students who had a fairly positive view of me,” Dumbledore said. “I assume it wasn’t so kind to you?”

“No, not quite professor,” George answered with a small laugh.

“Prefect Weasley, I’d be interested to see a response from another authority figure, one that the creators likely did not know personally.”

The insults were more pointed than those it gave to Dumbledore, but still showed an amount of deference to the name of Weasley it seemed. 

The headmaster chuckled. “Very nice. One last very quick test.” He said walking to his fireplace with a flash of green and a call of. “Professor Snape, I need to test a theory.” The Weasleys’ collective blood went cold. “Please try to extract some information from this parchment.” The headmaster pointed to the still folded map. This time the Weasley’s were shocked at how pointed the barbs were.

Unbeknownst to anyone in the office, the clock in the Weasleys’ home suddenly showed three hands pointing to “Mortal Peril”.

“Thank you, Professor Snape. That will do. I may require your help later.” Once the red-faced Potions Master left, the Weasleys all took a deep breath. “Now, I have a fair idea of who made this fascinating artifact, but please, Messrs Weasley, I see no intruder yet, so continue your tale.”

“First, when we got into it, we simply studied it and used it for a few pranks,” Fred admitted to a seemingly understanding nod from his headmaster, “But today I noticed a name I didn’t recognize: Peter Pettigrew.”

“Really?” Dumbledore asked with interest. “Could you show me?”

George nodded, carefully putting his wand tip to parchment and saying, “I solemnly swear that I am up to no good.” 

“Do you know the Marauders?” he asked.

“No,” George answered confused. “We got this from Filch’s office. All we know are their names as given here: Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot, and Prongs.”

“I assume you found Peter in the Slytherin dormitory? No doubt while trying to prank Marcus Flint?” Dumbledore asked, opening the map and looking for the dungeons.

An even more confused Fred answered, “No sir. Gryffindor tower. Third year boys room to be exact.” Dumbledore’s eyes snapped up, seeming to look into the Weasley twins’ souls. “See,” Fred continued, “he’s there now.” He pointed to the unfolded map George had opened to the correct section.

“Am I correct in assuming someone in that room has a pet?”

Charlie responded instantly, “two cats and a rat, that live in the dorm as far as I am aware.”

“Good. You will go there now. Collect those three animals and bring them here. Use these cages.” Dumbledore conjured three fine wire cages. “Also, use the students to catch the animals. If what I think is true, we’ll want to not tip off the animals. As you enter the dormitory or are placing the animals, say the need to go to the Hospital Wing for…” Dumbledore seemed at a loss for a moment.

“Fleas, sir?” Charlie chimed in.

“Perfect, Mr. Weasley,” Dumbledore said, “If you need help, please enlist your other brother. I will keep these two brothers here for a private chat.”

The elder brother approached, picking up the cages before walking briskly for the door.

The twins shared an apprehensive look and turned to their headmaster.

“Boys, I thank you. There’s a good chance you’ve done a lot of good here today. And I know it came at a risk for you.” He gestured at the map. “Not to mention taking it from Mr. Filch. That said, you’ve proven that you can be trusted.”

The twins didn’t dare look at each other as hope rose within them.

“I will return this on a few conditions.”

“Sir?” George asked.

“Never fear coming forward with information if you see something unusual. If you see something, come directly to me or your head of house if I’m not available. Also, I reserve the right to borrow this from time to time for my own investigations if I suspect something untoward is happening in the castle.” At those terms both twins nodded vigorously. “Good. I look forward to your pranks in the coming years, though no physical harm should be done, right?”

“Serious pain isn’t all that funny as a prank, sir,” George quickly agreed.

“Mild pain, embarrassment, and discomfort are hilarious,” Fred continued with a smile, “but permanent damage is no good.”

“Good, I’m glad we are in agreement,” Dumbledore said kindly, “but you don’t know the marauders, and it’s time for a brief tale. They were pranksters, much like yourselves. I never heard the individual names, but the name of their group was a known secret to some. Professor Snape was their arch-nemesis. Their identities were suspected prior to seeing the word ‘Marauder’s’. A gang of four, three of whom were some of the most talented students I’ve seen, had me suspecting them, and the reaction to Professor Snape appeared to confirm it. The name Marauder sealed it.

“The fact that you have seen him here, but no one has announced an extra person, indicates the presence of an animagus. If Pettigrew were under an invisibility cloak he would have undoubtedly been noticed by someone, shuffling feet or even breathing could be heard,” Dumbledore said, pausing.

“Peter Pettigrew was one of the Marauders, wasn’t he, sir?” Fred stated. 

After a nod from Dumbledore, George continued, “Moony was a bat maybe? Wormtail is obviously a rat. Padfoot could be either a dog or a cat. Prongs, a stag perhaps or a…”

“Rhinoceros? Bull? Something with horns.”

The twinkle had returned to Dumbledore’s eyes as he nodded again. “It appears the guest of honor is en route. Please take this, and stand aside. I must make some calls.” Several people were called, including a few Hogwarts staff members and a pair of Aurors, who insisted on calling in the Head Auror.

As the crowd was still assembling, Professor McGonagal asked, “Albus, what is going on?” She eyed her two students with more than a hint of suspicion.

“A man is coming back from the dead. There may be some questions for him, and I would like a few witnesses, just in case,” Dumbledore answered calmly.

“Really Albus, what is--”

The door opened, interrupting the outburst as Charlie and Percy Weasley strode in with the three mesh cages. The boys stopped short seeing the seven extra inhabitants before continuing to the Headmaster, setting the cages down in front of him.

With no explanation accompanying his actions, Dumbledore aimed his wand at the first cat with no effect other than the rat squealing and rattling his cage. The second cat also showed no effect, other than the increased agitation of the rat.

Before opening the final cage he looked to the head auror, Amelia Bones, and calmly requested, “Please stand ready with a Stunner, Auror Bones.”

Vanishing the final cage, Dumbledore instantly cast a silent spell at the rat before it could react. The rat was replaced by a fat and distinctly rat-looking man who was a familiar face to those who had organized the memorials for years. His clothing was fairly ragged, with several holes and rips.

Shouts and gasps exploded from the audience, and off to the side, Percy retched.

“Peter,” Dumbledore said, trying to cut through the crowd, but a Stunner was cast from the right side of the gathered audience and struck Pettigrew square in the chest.

Several stunned and angry looks were shot in the direction of the head auror who walked up to the stunned man silently, lifted his left arm and split a tear wider, revealing the Dark Mark.

“I saw it through a tear on his sleeve--didn’t want to give him the chance to lie,” Amelia Bones, said, standing. “I suggest a large, rat-proof cage, Professor. And perhaps an interrogation?”

“Certainly,” Albus said, reaching towards his potions master silently. “A brief interrogation, but first...” Albus looked to the Weasleys who had congregated together. “Take the cats back to their owners. Also, a brief round of applause and thanks for our heroes.” Dumbledore began clapping towards the Weasleys. “And Auror Bones, when you next speak to the Minister, I believe Orders of Merlin are in order, for the twins in particular. Now, Messrs Weasley, I believe we have this in hand. Please go back to your Common Room, but please, tell no one. Yet.”

“Yes, sir,” said Charlie before pausing. “On a personal note, add whatever unpleasantness you can to his sentence. That creep has been in my brother's bed for years.” A shudder went through the adults who were unaware of that fact as the Weasley brothers left.

*** *** *** *** *** ***  
Next Morning in the Great Hall  
*** *** *** *** *** ***

“Good Morning, all,” the Headmaster stood for an announcement, which was unusual enough for the Hall to instantly drop in volume. “As many of you will soon find out, yesterday evening a Death Eater was captured--Peter Pettigrew, long thought dead. He was found and tried last night. As it turns out, Sirius Black was framed. He is being released today. One final bit of news before the owls swoop in and I become but a small sideshow: for their bravery and setting right a long-standing injustice, I award...” At this he paused, letting the tension rise for a moment. “The Weasley twins fifty points each.”

The entire crowd erupted in confused shouts just as the owls swooped in, and Dumbledore sat down to enjoy the show with his breakfast.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You may be interested in checking out MiM: A Series of Sirius Events as well.


End file.
